It’s hammer time. It is time for the Salesman-in-Chief to go door to door to ‘splain what stimulus actually means to us woefully uninformed folk. It is amazing to me that the Repugnants, who have not had an original idea in decades, managed to steal the media coverage and change the direction of this much needed infusion of cash for jobs, jobs and more jobs. My seething at the Repugnants and the exasperation of the response by the Dreadfulcrats was been palpable this week. I have been angry, depressed and frustrated. Gail Collins in yesterday’s column, managed to talk me off the edge in her piece called, Tough Times at Obama Inc. In a question and answer column she got me to laugh and calm down inside of five minutes. Go Gail. I especially liked her Q & A about Judd Gregg.

“Why did Obama nominate Senator Judd Gregg to be commerce secretary? He’s not just a Republican; he isn’t even that moderate. And he voted to eliminate the Commerce Department! It’s not exactly a big gamble. Although the Commerce Department has many important duties, like supervising the patent office, it’s sort of like an old attic where people throw stuff that doesn’t fit anyplace else. And while there have been some sterling commerce secretaries, it has been run for lengthy periods of time by complete morons and the nation didn’t seem to suffer appreciably.”

– Frank Rich connects the Tom Daschle fall from grace, to the populace movement of Slumdog, to the disconnect that exists in Washington in today’s column. Maureen Dowd addresses some of Washington’s woes in today’s column called Potomac’s Postpartisan Depression

– This was my favorite TV moment of last week: Spending is Stimulus. That’s the Whole Point!

– I have long been railing about how our President never looks into the camera – at us. I have now discovered that if you watch his weekly address on youtube you can see him looking right at ya’

– For those, like me, who like the down and dirty details of the Stimulus Bill, here are some of the things that have been partially and totally cut from the bill.

– If you missed Rachel’s piece on the Stimulus Bill issue check it out now. She says loudly and clearly to the Repugnant Obstructionsts “…get out of the way of people who are actually trying to save the country.”

– In an unrelated Huh? item, Alaskan Senate Finds Todd Palin and Nine Others in Contempt – BUT, they voted not to seek punishment in the matter. Huh?

– Continuing in the ‘Judy One Note’ tome on the torture issue, Jonathan Turley discusses Leon Panetta as CIA nominee with Keith Olbermann. CIA director nominee Leon Panetta gave startling testimony in his confirmation hearings this week by retracting a statement critical of the Bush Administration’s rendition policy and proclaiming that CIA employees will not be punished for any war crimes that they committed.

– A sad goodbye at age 75 to Joe the Peeler who was a fixture at Union Square every weekend. I will miss him. I bought five peelers last fall.